ICC Sentences War Criminal to Prison for Destroying Timbuktu Heritage [VIDEO]

In a landmark decision, today the International Criminal Court (ICC) handed down a nine year prison sentence in the matter of The Prosecutor v. Ahmad Al Faqi Al Mahdi, the first war crimes case specifically focused on the destruction of cultural and religious heritage.

Presiding Judge Raul Pangalangan, a Harvard educated jurist from the Philippines, incarcerated Mahdi for intentionally directing attacks against ten buildings of a historical or religious character in Timbuktu, a designated UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Mahdi is a native of the West African nation of Mali who joined Ansar Dine, an al-Qaeda allied group, in April 2012. On June 30 and July 11, 2012, Mahdi ordered the destruction of nine mausoleums and the Sidi Yahia Mosque. Prosecutors named the defendant as head of the Hisbah, a vice squad established to uphold public morality.

The ICC issued a warrant for Mahdi's arrest in 2015. After prosecutors and the defendant reached a plea deal in February 2016, the ICC received Mahdi's admission of guilt and reviewed the prosecution's evidence at a trial held last month. Mahdi faced a war crimes charge under Article 25 of the Rome Statute.

Video of today's groundbreaking hearing is presented in its entirety, courtesy of the ICC.

Text and original photos copyrighted by Cultural Heritage Lawyer, a blog commenting on matters of cultural property law, art law, cultural heritage policy, antiquities trafficking, and museum risk management. Blog url: culturalheritagelawyer.blogspot.com. Any unauthorized reproduction or retransmission of any blog post without the express written consent of CHL is prohibited. CHL is a service of Red Arch Cultural Heritage Law & Policy Research, Inc.

Nicaragua and Mali on CPAC's Agenda

The Federal Register has posted the following announcement:

There will be a meeting of the Cultural Property Advisory Committee January 21-23, 2015 at the U.S. Department of State, Annex 5, 2200 C Street NW., Washington, DC. Portions of this meeting will be closed to the public, as discussed below. 

During the closed portion of the meeting, the Committee will review the proposal to extend the Agreement Between the Government of the United States of America and the Government of the Republic of Nicaragua Concerning the Imposition of Import Restrictions on Archaeological Material from the Pre-Hispanic Cultures of the Republic of Nicaragua (“Nicaragua Agreement”) [Docket No. DOS-2014-0027]. An open session to receive oral public comment on the proposal to extend the Nicaragua Agreement will be held on Wednesday, January 21, 2015, beginning at 11:00 a.m. EST. 

Also, during the closed portion of the meeting, the Committee will conduct an interim review of the Agreement Between the Government of the United States of America and the Government of the Republic of Mali Concerning the Imposition of Import Restrictions on Archaeological Material from Mali from the Paleolithic Era (Stone Age) to Approximately the Mid-Eighteenth Century (“Mali Agreement”). Public comment, oral and written, will be invited at a time in the future should the Mali Agreement be proposed for extension.

Text copyrighted 2014 by Cultural Heritage Lawyer. Blog url: culturalheritagelawyer.blogspot.com. Any unauthorized reproduction or retransmission of this post without the express written consent of CHL is prohibited.